


Prom: The Tony and Loki Way

by cazmalfoy



Series: Best Friends [3]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, M/M, Prom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-27
Updated: 2018-02-27
Packaged: 2019-03-24 21:32:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13819860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cazmalfoy/pseuds/cazmalfoy
Summary: Bruce finally forces Tony to admit how he feels about Loki. Just in time for Prom.





	Prom: The Tony and Loki Way

“Will you keep still?”

Tony Stark huffed in irritation, but finally stopped shifting on the spot and let his arms fall to his side.

Now that Tony was no longer moving, it didn’t take long for Jarvis to finish measuring the teenager for his graduation gown.

In less than a month, Tony would be walking across the stage at Aven Mar High School to accept his diploma. The teenager had been asked to be Valedictorian by the Principal, but the genius had turned the offer down; he wasn’t a fan of talking in front of people he knew. Strangers were no problem, friends were a different story all together.

No, Tony was much happier accepting his diploma and spending the rest of the day out of the limelight.

He had already gotten into college (MIT, obviously) on his grades alone, so Tony didn’t care about any additional extracurriculars. 

“Done,” Jarvis announced, stepping back from Tony and making a note of his measurements on the order form.

“Finally,” Tony huffed, jumping down from the stool Jarvis had ordered him onto. “I don’t even know why I have to wear a gown. It’s not like I’m ever going to wear it again,” he muttered, grabbing his sweatshirt and pulling it over his head.

Jarvis didn’t even look up from the order form. “You only get one High School graduation, Tony,” he drawled.

Tony pursed his lips, but didn’t comment. He and Jarvis had been having the same argument for months; the teenager didn’t want to go his graduation - didn’t see the point - but Jarvis had been adamant that he was attending. 

Even Loki - the one person who was always on his side - had agreed with Tony’s guardian.

In the end, Tony had mostly given up arguing. Mostly.

In his pocket, Tony’s cell phone buzzed once and he grinned, pulling the device out. “I gotta go,” he stated. “Loki’s waiting.”

Before Jarvis could even register that the teenager had spoken, Tony was halfway out of the room, heading to where Loki’s car was waiting for him in the driveway.

*

Friday saw Bruce sitting beside Tony at a workbench in the young genius’ lab.

They weren’t working on a specific project; mostly they were experimenting with combining different metals and pieces of machinery. Bruce may not be as smart as his younger brother, but their shared interest in science had been a bonding point for them as kids, and Bruce cherished the time he got to spend with Tony.

Especially since Tony would be heading to MIT at the end of the summer, and he wouldn’t get to him so frequently.

“Who are you taking to prom?” Bruce asked, trying to make his voice sound conversational and light. 

Tony’s hand paused briefly, before he continuing wielding the wrench. “Not going,” he muttered, never looking away from the workbench.

Bruce knew he should leave it at that. Jarvis had told him multiple times over the years that he needed to let the other teenagers realise their feelings on their own. But Bruce was getting bored of seeing them dance around each other; and that wasn’t taking into account that they didn’t know what college Loki was going to attend in the summer.

There was every possibility that the friends would be separated for the first time in their lives, and Bruce didn’t want that to happen before they admitted what everyone else knew.

Slowly, Bruce reached out and took the wrench from Tony. “Tony, look at me,” he instructed, placing the wrench down and fully turning to face Tony.

Wearily, Tony mirrored his actions and faced Bruce. He didn’t speak. Instead, he waited with a raised eyebrow for Bruce to say what was on his mind.

“Have you asked Loki?”

Tony’s eyes widened and he opened his mouth. When nothing came out, he slammed it closed. After two minutes of trying to think of something to say, he finally settled on, “Asked him who he’s going with, or asked him to go with me?” Tony’s voice was quiet and timid, and Bruce didn’t like it. His younger brother was usually such a confident and outgoing person; seeing him anything but, was unnerving.

“Both,” Bruce answered.

The younger teenager shook his head. “Neither,” he admitted. “How… How did you know I wanted to ask him?” he asked, running his fingers over the workbench before him.

Bruce couldn’t help it; he let out a small laugh in response to the question. “Tone, you’ve been in love with that boy since you were five.”

An adorable blush coloured Tony’s cheeks at his words, making him look much younger than he actually was. 

“I’ve been trying to make you see if for _years_ ,” Bruce confessed. “Dad’s going to kill me when he finds out we’re having this conversation.”

Tony’s eyes widened again. “Jarvis knows?” he shrieked, looking completely dismayed.

Bruce laughed and clapped Tony on the shoulder. “Tone, the only person who doesn’t know, is Loki,” he pointed out.

The dismayed look deepened on Tony’s face and he slumped forward, pressing his hands against his face. “Oh god,” he groaned. “What do I do?” His voice was almost completely muffled by his hands, but it wasn’t hard for Bruce to hear the desperation in his brother’s voice.

The older man smiled softly, and reached out to pull Tony’s hands away. “Well, the most obvious thing to do is ask Loki to Prom,” he pointed out.

Tony’s mouth fell open and he shook his head wildly. “No way!” he exclaimed. “I can’t do that! What if he says no?”

Bruce snorted and rolled his eyes. “Trust me, Tone. There is no way on this, or any other, planet that he’s going to turn you down.”

“You just have to be a man about it and make the first move.”

*

Tony had never felt so nervous in his entire life.

He was so used to breezing his way through life; barely being challenged by any of the obstacles that were put in his way. But this, the knowledge that he was about to make a big fool out of himself, was freaking him out.

He was half-tempted to turn on his heel and head back home. In fact, the only thing stopping him from doing just that was the knowledge that Bruce was still around and would probably kick his ass if he didn’t at least _try_ to speak to his best friend.

Tony took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart. Despite knowing it was physically impossible, he was still paranoid that the people around him would hear how much it was pounding and judge him for being so afraid.

Loki was standing at his locker, swapping out Math textbooks for English ones, and he looked up when he sensed someone heading in his direction. “Hey!” he greeted, a grin spreading across his face when he saw Tony getting closer.

His smile made Tony’s stomach swoop and he had to fight not to grimace. It was such an usual, yet familiar sensation at the same time, but he was still uncomfortable with how he was feeling.

When Tony didn’t say anything, the smile faded from Loki’s face and he frowned a little. “Everything okay?” he asked.

Tony drew in a breath and nodded his head. “Who are you going to Prom with?” he blurted out, a little louder than he meant to. 

Loki looked down and shrugged his shoulders minutely. “No one,” he replied, his voice nothing more than a quiet murmur.

Tony could hardly believe what he was hearing. Even though they hadn’t actually spoken about prom, he had assumed that his friend would have managed to secure a date.

Blood was rushing in Tony’s ears, almost drowning out the sound of the school around him. He knew he had to ask Loki now; if he didn’t, he knew Bruce was right and he would have passed up the opportunity to find out if his feelings toward his best friend were returned.

“Do you…” Tony coughed to clear his throat. His mouth was suddenly feeling so much drier than it had been. “Loki, will you go to prom with me?” he eventually managed to get out.

Loki’s eyes widened as he stared at Tony in surprise. The shorter teenager could feel his cheeks growing hotter and he wished he’d never opened his mouth.

Before Tony could take the words back, or just run away and pretend the conversation never happened, the corners of Loki’s mouth slowly twitched up in a small smile.

“Yeah,” he whispered, nodding once. “I’d like that.”

All the air left Tony’s lungs in one rush. “Really?” He felt like he couldn’t quite believe he had heard Loki correctly.

His best friend laughed and rolled his eyes. “Yes,” he reiterated. “You’re picking me up, and buying me dinner, though,” Loki added. “I’m not a cheap date, Stark.”

*

The night of Prom, Tony had every intention in sneaking out before Jarvis realised he had even left.

Of course, the universe was against him and Jarvis was waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs, with Bruce right beside him.

“Did you really think you were getting out of here that easy?” Bruce commented as Tony drew to a stop at the bottom of the stairs.

Tony scowled. “I was planning on it,” he confessed.

Bruce laughed and Jarvis rolled his eyes. “I swear, you boys act like I want a full photoshoot,” he muttered.

Now it was Tony’s turn to laugh. “That’s because you usually do,” he pointed out, earning himself a light glare from his adopted-dad.

“Just shut up and try to look pretty,” Jarvis grumbled.

The teenagers laughed, but Tony complied and moved to stand where Jarvis directed him, allowing the paramedic to take as many pictures as he wanted.

When Jarvis’s need to document the event had been satisfied, Tony was finally allowed to stop posing and feeling like an idiot.

“I got you this to give to Loki,” Jarvis said, pocking his cell phone and grabbing something off sideboard.

Tony raised and eyebrow. “A corsage? Jarv, if I give Loki that he’s going to _murder_ me.”

Bruce sighed and shook his head. “Even I know that’s not a corsage, Tony,” he said in exasperation. “It’s a lapel flower; it goes in your button hole.”

Jarvis nodded in agreement, and opened the box. There were two flowers; one emerald green and one sky blue. Jarvis plucked out the green flower, before handing the box with the other in to Tony. Carefully he pinned the flower against Tony’s lapel.

“You look so handsome,” Jarvis whispered, trying to ignore the tears which were welling up in the corners of his eyes. “Have a good time, tonight.”

*

By the time they arrived at the High School, Tony was in a foul mood and already about to call it quits.

There had been a traffic jam on the way to pick Loki up, which meant they almost missed their dinner reservation. The pair had been forced to rush through their food if they stood a chance of making it to Prom at a decent hour.

In short, Tony was grossly regretting his decision to attend prom, even if he was attending with the boy he’d had a crush on for years.

When Tony shut off the engine, Loki sighed and turned around in his seat so he was facing his best friend. “What are we doing here?” he asked softly.

Tony frowned. “Prom,” he said slowly, trying to work out what exactly Loki was asking him. “I know we’re a bit late, but…”

Loki shook his head and raised his hand. “I don’t mean that,” he whispered. “This isn’t us, Tone. We’re not people who get dressed up and go to fancy restaurants.”

The brown haired teenager swallowed and looked down at his hands. “I thought you would want to be wined and dined.” He lifted his head and fixed Loki with a light glare. “You said you wanted dinner.”

An adorable blush coloured Loki’s cheeks. “I know,” he agreed. “But I was wrong. I…” Loki hesitated for a second. “I think I would have been happier just grabbing some burgers and heading back to yours to watch a movie.”

Tony’s eyes widened. “Really?” Loki nodded. “Me too,” he admitted.

Loki laughed and rolled his eyes. “Why don’t we get out of here?” he suggested.

“Sounds perfect to me. This tie is driving me nuts!”

Tony started a little when he felt long fingers at his neck, but he didn’t move until Loki had finished undoing the bow-tie Bruce had tied for him earlier that evening.

“There,” Loki whispered, not making any effort to move away from his best friend.

Tony’s heart was hammering in his chest. He was so close to Loki. It wouldn’t take much movement to press his lips again Loki’s, and make every fantasy he’d had for years come true. But he couldn’t do it; he couldn’t bring himself to make that first move and make a fool out of himself. Just because Loki had said yes to Prom, didn’t…

His internal rambling was cut off when he felt a pair of soft lips press against his own, and he blinked in surprise.

Apparently there had been no need for Tony to make the first move, because Loki had gotten sick of waiting for him and decided to press his lips against Tony’s.

When Tony finally realised what was happening, he kissed back tentatively. The nervousness fell away a little when Loki gasped against his lips at the sensation.

“That was better than I dreamt it would be,” Loki whispered against Tony’s mouth when they parted slightly.

Brown eyes widened. “You dreamt about kissing me?”

Loki scoffed. “Tony, I’ve had a crush on you since we moved here,” he pointed out. He pressed another kiss against Tony’s lips, “Now, let’s get some candy and head back to yours.”

“Time to celebrate prom. Our way.”


End file.
